I Want It All, and I Want It Now!

Bosses are starting to complain about "deservers," who expect the big job, the big paycheck, and the big title before they're actually ready. Do you work with one of them? Could you be one of them? Here's how to navigate that minefield.

Bosses are starting to complain about "deservers," who expect the big job, the big paycheck, and the big title before they're actually ready. Do you work with one of them? Could you be one of them? Here's how to navigate that minefield.

What do you mean I'm not the CEO yet?

Dermatologist Noëlle Sherber, M.D., had seen ambitious medical students before, but this was something else: "A young woman assisting me with her first skin cancer surgery was so impatient to do it herself that she didn't want to pass me the instruments," says Dr. Sherber, who practices in Washington, D.C. "With that attitude, there's no way I would recommend her for the next level." Sound familiar? It does to the manager at one of the country's top tech companies—she recently overheard a paid summer intern complain at a meeting about the free corporate housing she was getting. "Then she went on about how the program was a waste of her time if she didn't get hired afterward," the manager recalls. "My first thought was, You don't know how good you have it. My second: You're never getting hired here."

If you're a young, smart, talented woman kicking ass at your office, nice work! But bosses around the country have a message for you: There's a difference between being driven and being a "deserver," and it's up to you to walk that line. "As the youngest millennials reach adulthood, there's this idea that workers in their twenties are spoiled, impatient for advancement, and disloyal to their employers," says Anne Kreamer, author of It's Always Personal: Navigating Emotion in the New Workplace. That's not true of most of us, she says, but it's a dangerous stereotype that can harm our careers.

Work experts say the millennial generation—anyone born in the 1980s or '90s, including this writer—is particularly vulnerable to deserver-ness because we're good at our jobs. Really good. "Millennials are tech-savvy, so they can often complete tasks more efficiently than their bosses," says Lisa B. Marshall, author of Smart Talk: The Public Speaker's Guide to Success in Every Situation. "And most have done two or three internships by the time they get their first entry-level job, so they already feel they've paid significant dues."

We've also been trained by the new work heroes—from Mark Zuckerberg to Lauren Conrad and everyone who's scored a TV deal based on her Tumblr—to believe that the way things have always been done isn't always the way they should be done. "For this generation, being entrepreneurial is natural," says David D. Burstein, author of Fast Future: How the Millennial Generation Is Shaping Our World. "They join a company and think about changing how things work. It's intuitive for them." What's more, in a climate of hiring freezes and layoffs, you should look out for yourself— "The risk is that if they see you as entitled, they won't take you seriously."who else is going to? "Pension plans, health care, and companies showing loyalty to employees are last-century artifacts, so young workers treat the organization accordingly," says Kreamer.

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Perfectly sensible. But still: Act too presumptuous and you can turn off your bosses. "The risk is that if they see you as entitled, they won't take you seriously," says Burstein. Besides, no one likes the office know-it-all. So here are the best ways to make sure the boss sees you as dedicated, not a deserver.

#1. Ask questions.

Even the office rock star can learn from her supervisors. "Listening and demonstrating humility go a long way in showing respect," says Heather McGregor, author of Sharpen Your Heels: Mrs. Moneypenny's Career Advice for Women. A higher-up can also be a template for what flies. "Watch how she handles a situation and mirror that behavior, and you won't come off as arrogant," says Kreamer.

#2. Don't try to change everything at once.

It's great that you have ideas to improve the office. But you may not be the first person to propose weekly Skype meetings with the regional sales reps. "You think you're being helpful, but it may look like you're saying you know better than your boss," says Alexandra Levit, author of Blind Spots: The 10 Business Myths You Can't Afford to Believe on Your New Path to Success. "Remember: If the organization were truly incompetent, it would have gone under before you got there." The best way to contribute? "Ask for input from your boss early on in the process rather than ambush her with your idea at a big meeting," says Burstein. "You'll be treated better, and your idea may actually happen."

#3. Don't cop an "I went to college for this?" attitude.

Nobody dreams of making copies or entering data, but someone has to do it. "Throw yourself into the things no one else wants to do, and no one can say you consider yourself too important," says McGregor. "Come in on a weekend and catch the office up on organizing. You help your employer and learn about the clients." One more thing, says Lisa Stasiulewicz, a style editor at Amazon: "Learn to fix the printer. No joke. It will always break, paralyzing the office. Fix it, and you're a go-to person in a crisis."

#4. Find yourself a better boss.

"Just as millennials need to be more sensitive to their employers, employers need to understand millennials better," says Burstein. So if your supervisor won't work with you on your approach, you may need to look elsewhere—or launch your own thing. But don't leap too fast, says Kreamer: "Dive into your current job, suck what insights and skills you can, then strike out on your own." And if you work with a deserver? Help her adjust her style. Because you never know, she may be your boss someday.